Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · IELTS Summit Mastery · 2026-11-05

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Write about the following topic:

Many young people choose to take a year out between finishing school and starting university in order to gain work experience or to travel. The experience of non-academic life this offers benefits the individual when they return to education.

To what extent do you agree or disagree?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your knowledge or experience

Student answer (Band 5.0)

Many young people choose to take a year out between finishing school and starting university in order to gain work experience or to travel.I agree with such young people opinion because it gives them chance to explore new activities specially when they work in field and choose professional work their mind become active and they know how to handle difficult situatuon and they also gain experience that how academic and professional life is totally different.Their mind start to think differently and they become more responsible in their field .School and university level is not same .In school youg people are basically teenage but in university they become young and if without any gap they jump from school to university they don't know how to manage it effectively but if they work then they face many hurdles and hardships and that situations make them strong .if some young people decide to travel then it is also good option they can explore different adventures and they know how adventures work in life and their mind also become fresh but if they travel only and do not explore anything then its just waste of timebut if young people travel as to explore historical places then it increases their knowledge and they gain different opinions regarding to it . i want to add example of my friend regarding to it .At school level she was not confident and very shy person ghen before going to university she worked in clinic.She gained work experience and it enhanced her skills and she became me uch more confident that helped heer how to work in university and how to handle all types of tasks in university so i think i agree with this point of view .

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You clearly agree that a gap year can benefit young people, and you address both work and travel, so the response is relevant to the question. The clinic example gives your argument a concrete illustration: your friend became more confident and better able to manage university tasks after working. However, the work-related benefits are explained more fully than the travel benefits. The point that travel can refresh the mind or build knowledge is asserted rather than developed with a specific explanation of how this helps someone return to study. Your position is clear, but the discussion would be stronger if you explained the link between each experience and academic performance, and supported both sides of your argument with comparable detail.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response follows a broadly understandable sequence: it introduces agreement, discusses work, considers travel, and ends with a personal example and conclusion. However, nearly all of this is presented as one long paragraph, making the progression difficult to follow. Ideas are often joined by repeated “and,” “but,” and “if” rather than being grouped into clear stages. For example, the discussion moves from work experience to school and university, then to travel, without paragraph breaks or clear transitions. Some references, such as “that situations,” are also unclear. Organise the essay into an introduction, separate body paragraphs for work and travel, and a conclusion; use linking phrases selectively to show how each point relates to your position.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “work experience,” “professional life,” “responsible,” “historical places,” and “confidence.” There are also attempts to express more specific ideas, such as handling difficulties and exploring new activities. However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or repetitive, which sometimes makes the meaning less clear. Phrases such as “how adventures work in life,” “regarding to it,” and “waste of time” do not express the intended ideas naturally. Spelling errors, including “situatuon,” “youg,” and “ghen,” also reduce accuracy. Build a more precise range of phrases for describing transferable skills and educational benefits, and check spelling and collocations during revision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple statements and longer sentences with clauses, for example when explaining how work can prepare students for university. This shows some range, but long sentences are often joined without clear punctuation, and errors in sentence structure and agreement make parts difficult to read. Examples include “their mind start to think differently” and “if they work then they face many hurdles,” where the subject and verb forms need closer control. Articles and sentence boundaries are also inconsistent, as in “it gives them chance” and the extended opening paragraph. Practise separating connected ideas into complete sentences, while retaining a few accurately formed complex sentences using “because,” “although,” or “if.” Careful proofreading for agreement, articles, and punctuation would improve clarity.

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